Artists from around the world showcase work at UCLan

26 November 2014

Lyndsey Boardman

In the City exhibition opens at Hanover Building

Over 60 artists from around the world have brought their creativity to Preston as part of an exhibition at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) that reflects the cultural, social and political landscapes of where they live and work.

The In the City exhibition, part of the UCLan Hanover Project series of work, showcases photographs taken by 62 artists from Austria, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Sweden, the UK and the USA.

This interdisciplinary group show explores perceptions of cities on a global scale and the artists have been invited to reflect current cultural, social and political subjects through the built environment in which they live and work. The exhibition is free and open to the public until Friday 12 December.

San Francisco artist Jonn Herschend has contributed to the exhibition with his image Alcatraz to Scale (2014), which depicts a model that sits inside Alcatraz itself. He said: “I feel like I’ve captured a Russian doll, a world within a world. Alcatraz is an iconic landmark in my home town and I took my family for the day to see it through fresh eyes as a tourist. I wanted to reflect its troubled past as prison and its current state as a popular tourist attraction.”

We’re excited to welcome so many artists from all over the world to exhibit their work here in Preston. I hope visitors find the display engaging and thought provoking and I’d encourage anyone with an interest in the city to come and see it.

Fellow artist and exhibition contributor Heidi Hove from Denmark has included a black and white photograph taken from a collection she compiled during a trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina. She said: “I have captured an image showing where local people have taken pavement repair into their own hands and at the same time covered the new concrete in footprints. I like the idea that they have made a permanent mark and left a personal trace on an ever changing landscape.”

UCLan Fine Art Lecturer Victoria Lucas, who as both researcher and gallery co-ordinator devised and initiated the project, commented: “We’re excited to welcome so many artists from all over the world to exhibit their work here in Preston. I hope visitors find the display engaging and thought provoking and I’d encourage anyone with an interest in the city to come and see it.”

The Hanover In the City exhibition is open weekdays 10.00am – 5.00pm in UCLan’s Hanover Building until Friday 12 December. The exhibition is free and open to all.